A cricket match was suspended after someone fired a metal arrow onto the pitch

Cricket players were urged to leave the pitch after a crossbow bolt was fired into the ground.
Jordan Mansfield / Getty Images
Play was suspended at a County Championship cricket match at The Oval after a metal arrow was fired onto the pitch.

Surrey and Middlesex were playing to a draw but the match was brought to a halt at 4.25 pm on Thursday as a "projectile" landed close to where players were positioned.

Surrey cricketer Stuart Meaker said: "We have just officially gone off the field because a metal-tipped arrow just landed on the pitch!"

A BBC social media account called the projectile a "crossbow bolt." Here is what it looks like.

Metropolitan police said in a statement: "Officers are on scene. The ground is in the process of a controlled evacuation.

"There are no reported injuries. At this early stage it is believed that the object came from outside of the ground. There have been no arrests. We retain an open mind as to motive. Enquiries continue."